A soda bottle exploded in the hands of an RPI maintenance worker Tuesday and a dorm at the campus was evacuated after police say they found what they thought were more potentially hazardous items there.

The worker picked up the two-liter bottle from the lawn and went to throw it into the trash bin when it burst, Capt. John Cooney said. The worker was "exposed to an unknown liquid" and was taken to Samaritan Hospital, where he was treated and released, he said.

The police spokesman said the worker appears to not have been seriously injured. Police late Tuesday said the chemicals were intentionally placed in the bottle.

A hazmat team performed a room-by-room inspection of Rousseau Dorm on Beeman Lane, and nothing hazardous was found.